How Could It Be?
by SilverChocolate
Summary: New Chapter Up...!!!! Pain...screaming...torture...Ice Cubes crushing between her teeth. yes. THE TIME HAS COME! Is it a boy...or a girl? What's wrong with Helga? Are they keeping the baby? Questions may or may not be answered in the final chapter.
1. The Day After

Helga And Arnold…

  Together again. This time, everyone attended this wild party. Everyone's drinking…getting high. You know, those usual big parties. Helga and Arnold are juniors in High School. I don't know why I chose for them to be juniors and not seniors. Well, then…HELGA GETS PREGNANT!! By WHO?! 3 guesses…Hahaha. You'll probably get it in one. But anyway, on with the show! How does the father react to such news? Will he even help? Is he emotionally capable of having a baby? 

Chapter One: The Day After

"Man, Phebes, I have this huge headache," mumbled Helga over the phone. She put her hand on her face. 

"You must've had a lot to drink last night, huh?" She asked. 

"You don't even know the half of it." Helga shook her head. Everything was so blurry to her. She remembered a lot of beer, lots of people. Lots of throwing up. And then she must've blacked out because she didn't remember anything for the rest of the night until the host of the party (Rhonda) made her wake up and shoved her out. Or something…Rhonda's parents were out of town, and she wanted to make everyone have a fun time because they were just juniors. 

"It was worse?"

"Everyone was so wild…it was crazy. Hectic. Hell, I don't even know how I got home." 

"Seems like I made the right choice to stay home yesterday." 

"You don't know how lucky you are. I don't know how many times I threw up this morning," she moaned. "Hang overs are so not fun." 

Phoebe chuckled. "What did you do most of the time there? Besides drink?" 

"Well, I think there were a lot of people making out…everyone was practically. I think. It's just an hour into the party, and I forgot everything."

"Did you really get that drunk? Can't you try to remember a little?"

Helga squinted and tried to think back. "I remember this guy…I only remember yellow…on the top." 

"Very interesting." 

"Yeah…I spent the whole night with him, I think."

"Well, Helga, I've got to go. Gerald wants to see me in an hour. Bye!" said Phoebe quickly. 

"Bye, Phebes." She hung up the phone.

The only real thing she could remember from the party was that she was indeed making out with one guy…. but then…after that, it was hard for her to remember exactly what happened. She remembered some sleeping…and the whole night spent with a guy. The only thing she had from him was this blue shirt she ended up waking up with this morning. 

Well, it didn't matter. Everyone was _doing _it. If she didn't…with that guy, they would be different. Besides, seniors were there too. And if you wanted to be _in_ you had to do what everyone else did. Right?! 

Helga hurled in the trashcan again. She still felt awful. Not really good enough to get out of bed. Not really good enough to take her temperature. 

As far as she was concerned…

She wouldn't drink another drop of beer or vodka…

For the rest of her life. 

Slowly, she closed her eyes and forced herself to go to sleep. 

***

The telephone rang in the boarding house. Grandpa picked it up. "Hello? Just a sec." He put his hand over the receiver. "Arnold!" He called out. "Your friend is on the phone." 

Arnold woke up as the sun hit his face and groaned. "What time is it?" He mumbled to himself. He glanced at his clock. It was noon. "Ugh…" he groaned. He felt just as awful as Helga did. 

"ARNOLD!" Grandpa shouted. 

"Okay, Grandpa," he replied as he stumbled to his phone. "Hello?" 

"Hey man, it's Gerald. 'Sup?" 

"Nothing really," Arnold yawned. 

"You sound beat." 

"Yeah. The party was a killer. I spent the whole night puking once I got home." 

"Damn, that must suck. I guess that's a good reason for me to have not gone to the party."

"You don't know how lucky you are to be feeling good today." 

"How were the girls?" Gerald wondered aloud. 

"Good – I think I spent some time with this one girl. She was pretty cool. Too bad I don't remember who she is." 

Gerald chuckled. "You guys spent the whole night with each other? Did you guys…" 

"I don't know. Everything's too screwed up." 

Gerald chuckled some more. "Well, I just wanted to check up on ya. You know. To see if you remember anything from the party." 

"Tough luck." 

"Anyway I gotta go now. I'm meeting Phoebe real soon. Catch ya later. And try to stop puking." He hung up. 

Arnold groaned and hung up too. Who ever knew going to High School parties would be so painful? 

He fell asleep with the clothes he wore last night. All on backwards. He looked at his foot and saw a pink sock. "Hm…" he mumbled. He could remember something about the pink sock. He just couldn't put his finger on it. 

"Hey Arnold," said Grandpa, knocking on his door. 

"Come in Grandpa," said Arnold, taking a seat on his bed. 

Grandpa walked in and laughed. "Had a long night, didn't you, short man? And…where's your shirt?" 

 "It was a wild party," he said pulling his hand through his hair. 

"Ah, I remember back in the days when I went to parties like that." He sighed. "Any nice girls?" 

"Yeah. There was this one girl…I really hit it off with." 

"Who was she?"

"I don't really remember. She's kind of a mystery girl. You know?" 

Grandpa winked. "I remember those party days," he sighed again. "Fun…" He chuckled. "W-w-w-ait… Arnold, you didn't…" 

"Grandpa!" Said Arnold sternly. He wasn't even sure if he DID or not. 

"Haha, Just kidding, Arnold…Just kidding!" Grandpa said. "I'll just go and leave you alone." He patted Arnold's back. "Go back to sleep. I'll save you some lunch." He grinned and walked out of his room. 

Arnold groaned and fell back on his bed. Life could not possibly be so hard. He began to reminisce about that night. Trying to remember what had happened…

***

"That was the wildest party ever," said Harold during lunch. "I never knew ANYONE could've gone out of the party alive." 

"I know I wasn't alive when I woke up," said Rhonda. "There was so much crap on the ground. It was really messed up. And my mom's porcelain vase smashed…it cost $1000! Or even more. And SOMEONE JACKED ONE OF MY DAD'S ROLEXS!" She complained.

"That really sucks," said Harold. 

"You're telling me." 

"Rhonda, that was a wild party," said Helga walking up to her. 

Rhonda shook her head and looked down. "It was so disgusting. Puke everywhere…and all these clothes on the floor. Ugh."

"Yeah – everyone was kind of getting…uh…" 

"Frisky?" Sid asked.

"Yeah, Sid." Helga said sarcastically. She laughed. "But really. I don't think anyone left Rhonda's house without getting either drunk, or laid." 

"I think that was the best part of the whole party," said Sid. 

Helga shook her head. "Do you even REMEMBER anything about the party?" 

"Sure – I – Okay. Fine. I don't. SUE ME OKAY?!" 

"No one really remembered what happened," said Arnold, walking in on their conversation with Gerald and Phoebe. "I think everyone who didn't go was lucky they didn't experience being hung over." 

"You're right, Arnold," said Helga. "And may I remind you – being hung over feels bad." 

Well, I can't say that Helga and Arnold are exactly the best of friends – but they're still like usual. But Helga's temper is a little better…and she's got the looks. With her hair a nice golden blonde, and her eyes big and skin so peachy and soft. Arnold didn't look too bad himself. He had developed muscles and had a growth-spurt. Any girl would love to be with him. 

"So did any of you guys get in trouble?" Gerald asked. 

"Nah, Grandpa didn't care," said Arnold. 

"Miriam was already hung over herself…and Big Bob pulled an all-nighter at the store." 

"My parents scolded me forever. And then I had to go to Rabbi Goldberg…and it was just pain and suffering. I'm grounded for a month," said Harold. "And I'm sentenced to community service every Saturday." 

"Ouch," they all said together. 

"Get this: If I don't clean every inch of my house by the time my parents get home tomorrow…I'm going to be living without any make up for a month!" Rhonda wailed.

"Oh…Gee, Rhonda. That sucks," said Helga sarcastically. "Eugh, is it just me, or are you guys also experiencing stomach pains?" 

Harold rubbed his stomach. "Nah, I feel fine." 

"Maybe you had too much of that filet minion," said Arnold. "I _know_ that that stuff is weird…" 

"I had some of everything. And I'm fine," said Harold. 

"I know, Harold," said Helga. 

"Or maybe you're just still tired from the party," said Phoebe. "I've read that your stomach can stay agitated for a couple of days after being hung over." 

Helga sighed. 

"Don't worry, Helga. We'll all probably be experiencing that sooner or later," said Arnold, putting a hand on her shoulder. "Don't feel left out." He winked.

Helga took his hand off her shoulder. "Try not to touch," she said. How she wanted him to touch her…but she still had to keep herself sane. 

"Hey, do any of you guys remember who you slept with at the party?" Arnold asked out of the blue. 

"Eh…it's all a big blur," said Harold. "I'm pretty sure I stayed with Patty the whole time though." 

"Don't even remind me about the sex. There are condoms everywhere." 

The bell rang. 

Arnold and Helga walked together to class. "What about you, Helga? Do you remember?" 

Helga glanced at Arnold. "No, not really. Do you?" 

"Nah. Not at all…All the evidence I have is this sock." He explained. "I accidentally wore it instead of mine. So you see…" 

"Yeah. I even have a shirt from the guy. But anyway, I never would've known you would fall into peer pressure like how you did, Arnoldo." 

"Well, everyone does. Once in a while." He shrugged. "Right?" 

"Yeah. I guess so." 

***

"Today class, we're going to be talking about reproduction in the human body!" The teacher said, trying to make it sound as science-y as possible. 

The guys chuckled lightly and most of the girls blushed. Helga just sat there, laughing along with the guys. 

"This is no laughing matter!" She demanded. "I'm going to show you all a slide-show right now. Just to get an idea…" She turned off the lights and turned on the projector. 

"Now, these are what happens during the 40 weeks of pregnancy." She showed them slides, as she expected the class to take notes. 

Arnold sat next to Helga and wrote her a note. 

_Hey Helga…  
 This is fun, isn't it? _

He passed it to Helga, who sat right next to him. She smiled and wrote back. 

_Oh yeah, Arnoldo…  
Thrill of a lifetime. Are you still alive there?_

_Barely,_ he wrote_, this stuff is nasty. _

_You're telling me. And I'll have one of those growing in me one day!!! _

_Hopefully later than sooner. It looks too…too…what's that word? _

_Gruesome? _

_That's for sure. _They both laughed. 

"Ms Pataki, Mr Arnold…is there something funny about this?" Her right eyebrow arched. 

"No, ma'am." They said together. 

"Good. No more noises out of you two for the rest of class. Or else." 

The bell rang. "Tomorrow, class, we'll be talking about symptoms…and labor." 

Once Helga and Arnold stepped out of the room, they let out their breaths. "Man, that was just wrong…I hope I never see that again," said Helga. 

"Definitely. I just don't like the idea of our teacher telling us about…sex…and stuff." He shivered. 

"So when you get married, what'll you name your kid?" Helga asked. 

"Actually, I don't know. I want it to be one of those spur of the moment kind of things." 

"Well, my next class is across the school. I'll see you when I see you, Football head," said Helga. 

"Nice chatting with you, Helga." He smiled. 

**A/N:** I know, I know…it's all really predictable!!! I'm SOOOORRRRRRYYY…but I just couldn't make it subtle..and all secretive. But, hey, this time I promise no one dies…and I promise that it'll be a good read!


	2. I'm...what?

**Disclaimer: **(That I stupidly forgot in the other chapter) I do not own any of the Hey Arnold characters. They are all owned by that one guy…who's owned by Nickelodeon. Yup…uh. I'm only borrowing the characters and messing around with them. Eer…don't take it the wrong way. (all you nasty-minded people)

****

****

**Chapter Two: I'm…what? **

****

"Good job, Miss Pataki," said Mr. Paltow. "Another A. If you keep this up, you'll be top of the class." He winked. 

Helga looked at her essay on Shakespeare. Ten pages, size eleven font. She even added her own interpretations of his sonnets, and inserted her poems. How could she have not gotten an "A"? Hello future career in literature. 

"Damn, Helga," began Arnold, moving his chair next to her desk while the teacher let them study. "You are always getting A's on these English assignments. You are good." 

"Thanks." She grinned. 

"Let me see that essay of yours," he took it from her hand. "This is thick." 

"Yeah, so?" 

He thumbed through a couple of pages and chuckled slightly. 

"What's so funny?" 

"You're a poet," he murmered. 

"So?" She snatched her essay away from his hands.

"I never would've figured…" 

"Well, remember all those anonymous poems that were written in Mr Simmon's class?" 

"Yeah?" 

"I wrote them." 

"Even the one about the boy with the cornflower hair?" He smirked. "Who _were_ you talking about anyways?" He leaned in closer to her. 

She felt her cheeks heaten up. She put her hand on her left cheek. "No one." She smiled lightly. "No one you would be interested in." 

"Are you sure about that?" He chuckled. 

"Very sure, thank you." She turned away from him and opened her book (Pride and Prejudice) and began reading it. Totally ignoring that Arnold was there. 

"Is that a good book?" He asked. 

"I don't know. I just started yesterday," she mumbled. 

"Looks like a good book. Jane Austin is good," he noted. 

"Yes, so I've heard," she said sarcastically. She put her book down on her desk. "Isn't there something you should be doing?" 

Arnold shrugged. "I guess I could start reading my book…"

"Good for you!" She patted his head. "Now read, and stop bugging me." 

"If you insist," he mumbled and went back to his desk. 

_Helga, you stupid idiot…you should've let him bug you. You know you love it! _

***

"Helga, dear, are you okay in there?" Miriam asked, knocking on the bathroom door one Saturday. 

"Yeah, Miriam…I'll be okay. I guess I've been feeling a little sick." She barfed in the toilet again and flushed. 

"You know, this has been going on for a while. Are you sure you're okay?" 

"Yeah Mom…I'll be fine. Don't worry, k?" For the last few weeks, she's been having headaches, backpains, and has been extra sleepy. [A/N: Does it seem that for all my stories I add medical information?]

"If you say so." She walked away. 

Helga moaned in the toilet. "Crimety. This is soo not good." 

The door bell rang. "Hon," shouted Miriam. 

"What?" She yelled back, her arms holding the toilet seat. 

"Phoebe's here!" 

Helga just remembered that she had a date with Phoebe to go see a movie. How could she go out feeling like such crap? But, on the other hand, it might make her feel better. "Tell her to wait a second!" Helga shouted. 

She got up from the cold tile floor and fumbled with some toilet paper and wiped her mouth. She put her hand in front of her face and breathed and inhaled. Her breath smelled like vomit. Quickly, she opened a bottle of Listerine and filled her mouth with it. She gargled for 30 seconds and spit it out. Her hair was kind of a mess too. So she just quickly brushed it with her hands. 

Before she walked out the bathroom, she took another look at herself in the big mirror. "Ahh, good enough," she stammered. 

She walked out the bathroom and pranced down the stairs. "Hey Phebes," she said as cheerfully as possible in the Trophy Room. "Ready to go?" 

"Yup. Come on." They walked out of the door. They promised each other, at least once a month they would go out somewhere and walk there instead of drive. They wanted the excercise (thought they were both equally fit and thin). 

On the way, Helga's stomach began feeling a little bad again. Her face turned green. 

"Helga, you look really bad…" said Phoebe. "Are you feeling okay?" She asked as they were walking. 

Helga shook her head. "Not really. I've been throwing up in the morning…and plus," Helga's voice lowered. "I skipped my period…" 

Phoebe gasped. "Oh my God, Helga…could you be…" 

"No, I don't think so – well – I hope not. I mean, this thing could be because of stress, ya know? And I've been under stress…it's going to be okay." 

"But Helga…I think you should still check with the doctor…" said Phoebe. 

Helga sighed. "Fine, if it'll make you happy, Phoebe. Let's just drop by at the drugstore and get a pregnancy test. Okay? Besides, we missed the movie time anyway." They walked into the Sav-On's they were approaching and went straight to the back of the drugstore where they sold those perscription drugs. 

"Hi, how may I help you ladies?" The woman at the counter asked. She looked middle aged with white hair and a pair of bifocal glasses on the tip of her nose. 

"Um…" Helga mumbled. "Can I please buy a pregnancy test?" She coughed. 

The woman smiled warmly. "What brand would you like?"

"The most accurate one please." 

The lady went to the back and took the best one for her. "Fifteen dollars please." [A/N: I have no idea how much these cost…I'm guessing…]

Helga's eyes widened. "Oh my fuckin…" Helga mumbled, reaching into her pockets. "Here. Fifteen dollars." She handed her the money and took the test, stuffing it in her pocket.

"Now let's go back to my place," said Helga, quickly walking out of the drug store. 

Quietly, they walked back into Helga's house. No one was home. Miriam was out doing who knows what, and Big Bob was off buying more big white belts. 

The two of them ran up the stairs to the bathroom. Helga went inside as Phoebe waited outside. After five-fifteen minutes, Phoebe knocked on the door. 

"Come on in, Phebes." 

Phoebe walked in. "So, is it time?" 

Helga glanced at her pink watch. "Sure…why not?" She got up from the toilet and held her breath as she looked at the stick. "Oh my God…" her hand clenched her shirt. 

"What?" Phoebe asked with urgency in her tone. 

"It's positive…" Helga broke down crying. Her hands covered her face as she cringed down on the floor, crying her eyes out. 

Phoebe bit her lip and bent over, patting her best friend's back. Giving her comforting words. "It's okay, Helga…everything will be okay." 

"Phoebe, I can't possibly tell this to my parents!" she sobbed. "They'll go balistic." Her voice was shaky as she wailed. "They're both going to kick me out of the house, I just know it!" 

"No, they can't do that, Helga. You're still their daughter." 

"Y-you don't know how they think. They already don't like me as much as perfect Olga." She tried easing her voice. "They won't want me – they would want to forget me. And I know it. I just know it!" 

"Try not thinking about all this right now. You'll just cry even more." 

"A-and I don't even kn-know who the father is!" she wailed. Phoebe handed her a few kleenexes. Helga blew into them. 

"Well, let's try to figure it out…" said Phoebe. "You say all you have left of that 'mystery guy' is a blue t-shirt?" 

Helga nodded and sniffed. 

"If I helped you find out who the father is, would you feel better?" 

"A little," she said timidly. 

"Are you going to tell your parents?" Phoebe asked again. 

Helga drew in a deep breath and let out a shaky sigh. "I guess I have no choice. But – no. I'll tell them once I know who the father is," she stated clearly. 

"Do you promise?" 

"Yes, I promise." Helga forced a smile. "Thanks." 

"For what?" 

"Giving me kleenex." She giggled. "And just for everything. I knew you were my best friend for a reason." Helga winked. Together they laughed. 

***

"Hey Phoebe," said Gerald over the phone. 

"Hello Gerald!" she said happily. "What's the call for?" 

"Arnold and I were going to head out for a burger and we were wondering if you and Helga wanted to join us." 

"Uh, I can, but Helga can't." 

"I thought you two were spending the day together…" 

"Yeah," she replied. "But suddenly she didn't feel very well and had to stay home." Hey, it _was_ true. 

"Oh. Cuz Arnold really wanted to see her…" he mumbled.

"Did he really?" she asked in astonishment. 

"Yup." She could picture him smirking. "Well, how about we meet at McDonald's in about half an hour?" 

"Sounds great." 

"Bye…" 

"Bye…" She hung up. Though she and Gerald have been going out for six months, Gerald still acted quite awkwardly around her and didn't even tell her those special three words. Everytime she thought about it, she just got more aggravated. So then why didn't she break up with him? Because…she loved him. So much…but just couldn't tell him. 

"Gerald, I still just don't understand how you can't just tell her. 'I love you'. Three very simple words!" explained Arnold.

"It's not as easy as it seems!" Gerald retorted. "You just don't understand. You've never had to tell someone how much you love them before. It's hard!" 

"Can't be as hard as free-throws." 

"You can't compare love with basketball!" snapped Gerald. 

"Sure you can," said Arnold. "See, uh, dribbling takes time…just like a relationship. And if you, uh, rush a shot, nothing good will happen from it…like if you rush a…you know…with….well," he murmered. 

"See!" 

"I'm thinking!! Basketball is a hard game to understand," he mumbled. 

In came Phoebe through the door. Her hair was short and her eyes were a big beautiful brown. Her glasses were shaped like cat-eyes and they matched her personality wonderfully. And her legs were so slender and even though she wasn't very tall, her shoes were always high and fashionably chic. 

Gerald gawked as she walked towards him and Arnold. He always looked at her that way. It seemed like she never ceased to amaze him in every way. If only he had enough guts to tell her. 

"Hi Gerald, Hi Arnold," she smiled, sitting down at the booth with them. 

"Hey Phoebe," said Arnold. 

"Hey," said Gerald, slightly choking on his words. Or shall I say word. 

"So what did you two order?" She wondered. 

"I just went ahead and ordered us all cheeseburgers," said Arnold. "Is that ok with you, Phoebe?" 

"Perfectly fine." She smiled. 

"Number Thirty-Six, your order is ready." 

"That's us, I'll go get it," offered Arnold, getting up. Meanwhile, as he got up from his seat, Phoebe noticed a pink sock fall out of his pocket. She leaned over and picked it up. "This is so familiar," she murmered. 

"Yeah, it's Arnold's. I mean, it's the girl's," interjected Gerald, sipping his Coke (the drink, not the drug!!). 

"What girl's? He's not dating anyone." 

"The girl he spent the whole night with at the party." 

A lightbulb lighted in Phoebe's head. Then Arnold came back with a tray of cheeseburgers. "Arnold," she began.

"Yeah?" 

"This sock…is from the girl you spent the whole night with at the party?" Phoebe held up the sock in her hand. 

"Yup. No idea whose it is though. Do you?" 

_Yes, _she thought. _It's Helga's…_ "No. I was just wondering…Arnold, did you, uh, lose anything at the party?" 

"As a matter of fact, I lost my mind." He chuckled and noticed the serious look on Phoebe's face. "And my shirt." 

"Oh. I see. Do you mind if I take this sock?" 

"Sure. Just don't lose it!" He mumbled. 

Phoebe put the sock in her purse and finished the burger with Gerald and Arnold. As she was about to leave, Gerald pulled her back. 

"Phoebe, I have to tell you something." 

"Yes?" Her eyes widened in anticipation, and she leaned in closer to him. 

"I uh, well," he groaned lightly. "I had a nice time with you today." He forced a grin. 

"Oh." She sounded disappointed and had a hurt look on her face. "Ok." She nodded slowly. "I have to go…" 

Gerald nodded too. "Bye…see you on Monday." 

"Bye." Quickly she scurried out of the resteraunt and into her car. 

"Dimwit," he murmered to himself. 

Phoebe hurried into her room and locked the door, she picked up the phone and dialed Helga's number. 

"'Ello?" asked Helga. 

"Helga!" squealed Phoebe. 

"What?" 

"I know who the father is!" 

Helga choked on her potato chips. "…Who?" 

"Well, remember you lost your pink sock?" 

"Yes…" 

"And you have that blue shirt?" 

"…yeah?" 

"Arnold lost his blue shirt that night…and Arnold had your sock!" 

Helga gasped. "So it's Arnold?" 

"Yes!" 

"Oh my…Lordy. I – I don't know what to say." Helga put her hand on her chest and just dropped her jaw. "Arnold…sweet innocent Arnold lost my virginity, got drunk, and made me pregnant?" 

"Seems that's what the scenario is." 

"Phebes, how am I supposed to tell him? I get choked up whenever I get near him."

"You two are friends, and I think he's starting to like you a lot." 

"I hope so. I just can't picture myself telling him." She sighed.

"You're going to have to tell him, Helga. It's either you or the baby." 

"Is that an option?" 

"Helga!" said Phoebe sternly. "You're stuck with this wether you like it or not." 

"Have we discussed the abortion part?" Helga asked cheerfully. 

"Helga! Please," demanded Phoebe. "You know abortion is illegal in this state. Besides, why would you want to kill an innocent life just to save your own reputation?" 

Helga shrugged. "I don't know…" 

"Well, you're going to have to tell someone. This won't be a secret forever." 

"I know, I know. I think I'll tell Arnold first." 

"Good idea," she paused, "Well, I best be going. Mother wants me to help her clean the kitchen. Best of luck to you, Helga." 

"Thanks…bye." 

They hung up. 

Helga looked up at her ceiling and held back the tears. "Why me?" 

***

"And Arnold makes another three-pointer from way down town," Gerald shouted and laughed along with everyone else on the basketball team. 

"Yes, thank you, thank you!" Arnold put his hands up in the air and grinned stupidly. Helga watched him from the bleachers. Man, he was so talented with his dribbling/shooting skills. She could stare at him all day, even though he was like a sweaty pig. 

The coach blew his whistle. "Good work out, team! Now take a shower, you all smell bad," he yelled. 

Arnold began walking to the locker room when he saw Helga sitting on the bleachers, writing in her notebook. He smiled slightly and went up to her. "Hey Helga. Couldn't get enough of me during the day, could you?" 

"No, of course not," she said jokingly. They chuckled together. "Arnold, I have something to tell you." 

"Me too," he mumbled. He rubbed the back of his neck. Lately, he had gotten few fond of her. I mean, she was so much more wholesome than before. He began seeing a different kind of Helga. A Helga he wouldn't mind dating. 

"Oh okay then, uh, you go first then." Helga put her notebook back in her backpack and looked at Arnold intently. 

Arnold twirled the basketball in his hands and let out a deep breath. "Helga, you know I've liked you for a long time now." 

"Oh really?" She layed her cheek upon her hand. 

"Yeah, and I was wondering if you'd wanna go out sometime." His cheeks flushed pink. Though they were already pink from working out, they were even pinker! 

"Like on a date?" 

"Well, yeah." 

"Funny you should mention that, Football Head." 

"Why?"

"You know how we were both at that party?" 

"Yeah…and…?" 

"And we both spent the whole night with someone…" 

Arnold looked hurt. "Are you saying you already have a boyfriend?" 

"No, no. I don't. But…"

"Look, I don't have one! I don't even remember what I did that night!" he defended. 

Helga rolled her eyes. "I know what you did." 

"You do?" 

"Yup," she paused, "you knocked me up." 

Arnold's eyes widened and his eyebrows raised. "What?" 

"I'm pregnant. And you're the father. Congratulations!" she said dully. "I just had to tell you that, and so now I'm going." She got up from the bleachers and began walking out. 

"Wait, Helga!" He called out, running after her. 

"What?" she asked irritably, flipping her hair in his face. 

"What if you're not really pregnant?" 

"What the hell are you talking about? I'm pregnant! The test said so!" 

"Maybe the test was wrong." Arnold shrugged. "Those things are wrong all the time." 

"I got the most accurate one. THAT COST ME FIFTEEN BUCKS." 

Arnold sighed and scratched his head. "I don't know what to say…"

"You don't have to say anything. I just had to tell you, and now you know. So now I'm leaving, Ok?" She grinned and walked out of the gym. 

Arnold just stood there. Man, oh, Man. What was he going to do? 

**A/N: **There are more chapters coming. I'm going to make this as dramatic as possible in future chapters…and uh…yes. Thanks for all those reviews! 


	3. Tell Me Now

**A/N: **Big Bob and Helga have a bitter argument. Helga moves out, and has to pay rent. There's much ado about what to do. Arnold and Helga show alittle affection…while her pregnancy is not even close to perfection. 

Chapter Three: Tell Me Now

Helga just finished telling her parents about what happened. Big Bob gave her the stare for about a good ten minutes, Miriam had her jaw dropped a good 5 inches. She had dropped her cup of coffee, and Big Bob lost his temper. He wanted to scalp whoever did it to Helga. But then again, he said "At least it didn't happen to Olga." 

Oh thank the Lord, Helga thought. _At least it didn't happen to Olga. _

Big Bob had even threatened to kick Helga out of the house if she wouldn't tell him who knocked her up. Helga prefered to keep it a secret. And for all she cared…who cares? 

"Damnit, Olga!" Bob growled.

"That's Helga, Dad." 

"Whatever!" He threw his hands up in the air. "How could you do this?"

"Do what?" she asked stupidly. 

"Get pregnant!" He stomped his foot. "You're so stupid, you know that?" 

"Yes, Dad." 

"I can NOT run a beeper empire while I'm thinking about you being pregnant! I can't possibly support another kid! You're enough of a pain!" 

"Well, FYI BIG BOB," she stressed, "You don't HAVE to think about anything! If I'm such a problem, I'll just go. Besides, no one cared about me anyways!" She stormed up the stairs. 

"Come back here little girl! You're only 14!" He shouted. 

"I'M SEVENTEEN!" She screamed and slammed the door shut. _Hold back the tears, don't show him that you're weak._

"Stupid life…" she mumbled. "I should've listened to Phoebe. I shouldn't have gone to that gay-ass party Rhonda threw." She took out a suitcase from her closet and opened it on top of her bed. "I don't need them," she sniffed. 

She opened all of her drawers and threw all her underwear in the suitcase and put in most of her clothes. Her mind was going crazy…she couldn't stop herself from throwing more of her things in the suitcase. Angrily, she hit her suitcase closed, put on a jacket and took out her stash of money she's saved since kindergarden from a sock and stuffed it in her pocket. 

Her feet stomped down the stairs. "Where do you think you're going Missy?" Big Bob asked, putting his hands on his waist. 

"I'm going," she grumbled. 

"Going? Where? You have no where to go!" 

"I'm going to get an apartment and live by myself." 

"What the hell are you talking about? You can't live by yourself!" 

"What do you care?" She snapped back. She walked out the door. 

Bob stood at the doorway. "Where are you going to stay? Huh? No one in the right mind is going to take a fourteen year old in!" 

"SEVENTEEN!" She screamed as she walked down the street. No, she didn't know where she was going. She was hoping that the, shall we say, road of life would lead her somewhere. So, she did the, uh, "logical" thing and closed her eyes and walked for ten minutes. Just to see where she would end up. 

She walked straight. Just straight and zig-zaggy. Not following the road. She didn't care if she got hit by a car…it was all part of her plan anyways. Ten minutes passed, and she was safe. Her eyes looked straight to see herself in front of Sunset Arms. 

"This is where I end up? Arnold's boarding house?" She looked up at the sky. "You've got to be kidding me…

"Are you sure this is where I'm supposed to end up? Give me a sign! Or else I am _not_ going in there!" 

Suddenly the door opened and all the animals scurried out of the house. Grandpa looked at her for a second. "Are ya here for the vacant room?" 

Helga's eyes widened. "Good enough for me," she murmered. "Uh, yeah. Vacant room…" 

Grandpa let her in the house and sat her down in the living room. "Hey, haven't I seen you somewhere before?" 

"Um, yes. Actually, I'm Helga. Helga Pataki…" 

Grandpa nodded slowly. "Oh yes, Arnold's told me so much about you. I remember now. Shouldn't you be living with your family?" 

"Well, I just wanted to move out. Get a, uh, early start in life." She looked at him directly in the eyes. "I'm having problems at home. They don't care about me so I don't want to bother them with me. So I'm here." 

"Ook. You know, there is a rent involved." 

"Did Arnold tell you?" She wondered. 

"Tell me what?" 

"That I'm pregnant?" 

Grandpa clutched his shirt and gasped. "Pregnant?" He gasped. "This isn't the 1900's! You're supposed to live before getting pregnant! I knew Arnold liked you, but…" he paused, "no wonder he came back with a sorrow face. Because you're PREGNANT!" 

_So, Arnold didn't tell him…_"Gramps, can I still live here?" 

"Oh, suuurre," he replied in almost a mocking tone. "Of course! Rent is two-hundred a month." 

"200?" she repeated in disbelief. "But, with all these medical things…and…school…" She drew in a sharp breath. "Fine. 200 bucks. Now show me my damn room," she demanded. 

Grandpa leaded her up the stairs and to an empty room with nothing but a bed and a desk. The window was small and dusty. She also noticed that her room was on the bottom of Arnold's. 

"Dinner at six," Grandpa said. "Do your own laundry."

"Yes, Sir." She closed the door. There was nothing much to unpack. Nothing really. It was so stuffy. Stuffy, stuffy, stuffy. "What's wrong with this room?" She complained to herself. She walked out of the room and stretched out her arms, inhaling a deep breath. "Much better." 

Arnold came walking down from his attic room and dropped the books in his hands to see Helga there. "Helga?!" He asked in disbelief. "What are you doing in the boarding house?" 

"I'm living here now. Big Bob kicked me out, and this is where life brought me," she replied, helping him pick up his books. 

"Life?" He straightened up with his books neatly in his arms again. 

"Yes." 

"Well, you can't live here! It's not good for you! You have to share a bathroom with weird people," he complained.

"So? I never said you had to care." 

"I care!" he retorted, stomping his foot. 

"Oh yeah?" she snorted. "Then why didn't you tell your Grandpa about this?" She walked back into her room and shut the door. 

Arnold groaned. "Why? Because I care!" He said sarcastically as he walked down the stairs to the kitchen where he found Grandpa with a 2-foot sub in his hands. 

"Hey Short-Man! What's shaking? Did you see our new roomy?" He chomped down his sandwich. 

"Yeah. I did." Arnold put his books down on the table and sat down as well. 

"You look troubled, Short-Man," he was half way finished with his sandwich. 

"A little," he replied.

"Is it because you got that girl pregnant and you didn't know, and then she told you and you just suddenly got all woozy and confused?" 

"How'd you know? Did this happen to you?" 

"No, no. My friend…ruined for life. Well, anyway, she your wife now?" 

"Not even close. I don't think I can be with her…I don't know. In her condition, and after what I did to her…I feel awkward." 

"Well, ya better get used to it!" He hit the table. 

***

Late at night, Helga stayed up reading Pride and Prejudice. It was 11 o' clock and she couldn't get to sleep. All she could think of was: How the hell am I going to get a doctor? Do I even want to doctor? Can I kill this baby? Labor is going to hurt badly. 

There was a knock on the door. Helga put down her book and pulled up the rough blanket to her chin. "Come in," she said almost like a whisper. 

Arnold walked in through the door. "Arnold? What are you doing?"

"I figured you would still be awake," he murmered. "Look, I just wanted to say that you don't need to pay any rent." 

"I don't?" She straightened up in her bed and bent her legs. 

"No, you don't. And," he continued, "I'm sending you to a different room." 

"Oh…ok," she said unsurely. "But why did you wait until now to tell me?"

"Because. I just had a lot on my mind." 

"You and me both," she grunted, getting up from the bed. "So where are we moving to?" 

"A bigger room with its own bathroom." 

"Oh joy!" she grinned and clasped her hands together. 

Arnold began stuffing back some of her loose items back in her suitcase. "Come on, it's not too far from this room." 

"Okay," she jumped out of her bed, holding the book in her hand and followed Arnold. He led her further down the hall and used a silver key to open the door. Once he opened it, Helga just froze. It was big. One big bedroom and a very clean and pink bathroom. There was even a T.V. and telephone. 

"Oh…wow. Are you sure this is for free?" She walked on the soft carpet. 

"Yup. And Grandma said she'd help with medical bills and such…" 

"Fantastic!" She jumped on the bed. "Whoa, these blankets are so much softer than the ones in the other room!" 

Arnold layed her suitcase on a stray chair in the middle of the room. "Good night, Helga." By the time he uttered those words, he saw her already fast asleep, with her book. Carefully, he took the book out of her hands and placed it on the nightstand and covered her with a blanket. "Sweet dreams," he whispered as he closed the door behind him. 

The next morning, Helga woke up at 9:00 Saturday morning. She stretched out her arms and yawned. The sun broke in through the big french windows on the left. She got out of bed and walked to the big window and gazed at the wonderful view of the city. What a way to start a morning. Everything was so perfect, but then she remembered. _Oh yeah, I'm pregnant._

After doing the morning thing, she walked down the stairs with a weary face. Then she smelled food, and she was starving. The aroma led her into the kitchen to see a short stack of pancakes with eggs, and bacon. "Mmm!" She mumbled, her mouth watering. Eagerly, she sat at the table and began chomping down her food. "This is so good!" she said with her mouth full. 

"Thanks," said Arnold, getting milk from the fridge. 

"Man, I never knew you could cook. You should be my side-kick. Phoebe couldn't cook like this," she grinned. 

"Here, take some milk. It'll slow you down," he handed her a cup of milk which she drank all in one breath. "OK, I was wrong…" 

"I wouldn't mind eating this everyday," she smiled. 

"Oh, and I have something else for you." 

"What?" 

"A doctor!" 

"You mean an obstitritian?" 

"Yeah." He grinned. "I looked for one last night, and we can see her today. She helps in this Teenage Group Pregnancy thing…" 

"All last night?" 

"Yup." 

"Did you get any sleep at all, Football head?" 

Arnold shook his head and Helga noticed the dark circles under his eyes. "I'm okay though, don't worry." 

Helga nodded slowly. "Okay then." 

"C'mon we need to get there by 10:30," he rushed. "Get in the car." 

"We're very demanding today, aren't we?" She got up and walked out of the kitchen. 

Arnold's car was nice. It was a nice sized black sedan. Completely new. Helga loved his car because whenever she rode in it with him (which was only one time) he would play her favorite stations. 

They drove for about fifteen minutes to the hospital. It was a big hospital, and Helga just hated it. It sent bad vibrations down her spine. Just the thought of having to be in a hospital made her sick. But what could she do? Let the baby die? Hmm…Decisions, decisions. 

Arnold took her inside the automatic doors and to the lobby. It was cold and very white. Helga shivered. "You're not scared, are you?" He asked jokingly. 

Helga nodded and involentarily held his hand and stood close by him. Arnold felt her palms sweat slightly as her grip tightened on his hand. 

"Just take a seat, and I'll get everything ready, okay?" he whispered in her ear. 

Helga let go of his hand and took a seat. She found herself sitting next to a pregnant woman. Her stomach was big and she was fanning herself with her hand. "Hi," said Helga amiably. 

The lady smiled and replied. "Hello." 

"I see that you're pregnant…." Began Helga. "How far along are you?" 

"Seven months. Well, seven and a half to be exact. I'm just here for a check up." 

"Oh." 

"Yes." She wrinkled her forehead. "You look worried…what are you here for?" 

"I'm actually, uh, pregnant too." Helga's cheeks flushed lightly. "And I'm a little nervous…" 

"There's nothing to be nervous about." She grinned. "The only thing to be nervous about is if you don't get to eat the foods you're craving for." 

Helga giggled. 

"My name is Julia," said the lady, putting out her hand. 

Helga shook her hand. "My name's Helga." She smiled. "So, is it a boy or a girl?" 

"It's a boy." 

"Wow, that's great." 

"Yeah. We're naming him Marcus." 

"Nice name," said Helga. "Where's your husband?" 

"Over there," she pointed to a tall man with black hair standing next to Arnold. He was about five inches taller than Arnold, and Arnold was already 5'11. "You?" 

"Uh, the guy next to him…with the blonde hair," she answered. 

"Ohh, he looks like a nice boy." 

"Yeah, he is." 

Then Arnold walked towards her. "Come on, Helga. The doctor is ready for you." He put out his hand and Helga took it. They walked away. 

_I wonder what labor would be like for her if the child took after the father…_Julia thought. 

Helga and Arnold went up to the second level and walked through three corridors before arriving to the doctor's office. The doctor greeted them with open arms and led them into the room next door which was a hospital room with a bunch of electronic things and one of those small weird examining beds/table things. She told them to make themselves comfortable as she excused herself.  

Together, they sat on the bed/table with the white paper on it. Helga scanned the whole room. It was full of posters of birth, stages of pregnancy, symptoms…it was so much like having Sex Ed all over again. There was even a model of the inside of a woman's body. Would it be inappropriate to gag in the office? 

"Fun, isn't it?" Arnold laughed.

"You know, you don't have to do this with me…" she reminded him. 

"I'm obliged to." 

Helga rolled her eyes and punched him in the arm. 

Then the door opened and the doctor walked in. She looked about 40-something with her hair tied in a bun and she wore a white coat, with a clipboard in her hand. "So sorry about that," she murmered, walking to the two of them. "I'm Dr. Granger." She put out her hand and Arnold and Helga shook it. 

"Pleased to meet you," replied Arnold. Helga fidgeted on the bed. 

"Ah, you must be Helga," she said, looking at Helga. "I know, it's kind-of strange to be seeing all these graphic things on the wall." She shrugged. "After a while you get used to it though." 

"I hope so," she stammered. 

"Well, let's see…" she murmered to herself. "Arnold, please get off the bed." 

Arnold jumped off and sat on a little stool next to the bed. The doctor told Helga to lie on the bed as she examined her. (A/N: I am not going in detail about what happens…do I know? No. I was not pregnant before!) Arnold had to cover his face a couple of times by Helga's orders. 

"Everything seems fine so far," said Dr. Granger. "So, are your parents excited?" 

"Uh, not really," replied Helga. "They're just…so-so." 

Dr. Granger nodded. "Don't worry. You don't need their consent or anything, as long as Arnold had this signed by his grandpa. Everything should be fine," she flipped through papers on her clipboard. "Now let's see…today's the….and…." she wrote things on the papers. 

Helga sat up and yawned. 

"You should be due in June 10th. According to my calculations." 

"Awesome," exclaimed Arnold. "It won't be too far from the end of school."

The doctor handed Helga some papers about some medical things. "And, you should come back every first Tuesday of each month, ok?" 

Helga and Arnold nodded. They walked out of the hospital and Helga felt like she was going to faint. In the car, she went through a nervous break down.

"Oh my God. Arnold!" She screached. 

"What?" He exclaimed, pushing the brakes down on the car. 

"We are so deep in trouble," she sobbed. "We know nothing about having a baby…everything's going to be so weird…and my whole life will be ruined." 

"No…it's not true. Your whole life will not be ruined." 

"Oh yes it will," she was nodding as she wiped her tears on her arms. "This year we take SATs. And it'll all be so awful…"

"Being pregnant doesn't change things that much." 

"Oh yes it does," she weeped. 

"Helga, don't worry, look, we'll get a book, Ok? About pregnancy. All about it. Hell, we can even get ten books. And we'll both study them together. So you won't have to worry…" he said softly, trying to ease her nerves. 

"R-really?" 

"Yes, really." 

She sniffed and dried her tears. "Can we get them now?" 

"Yes. We can." They were on the road again…this time to the bookstore. 

A/N: You know, I have to do so much more information for this story…pregnancy is so complicated. Lucky for me, I get to be prepared for it extra early (oh joy). Oh and, that whole part about the labor thing with having a head like Arnold's…I got it from Amanda/Artse! Heehee. Please r/r and tell your friends! It's long before the story will end. 


	4. Just Because

Chapter Four: Just Because… 

Well, they ended up getting one copy of every book about pregnancy. Helga studied them like crazy, as Arnold tried to keep up. It was like that for the first month. They would go to school together and everything, and come home together…you know. Those usual things. No one suspected Helga of being pregnant. Because she was fine. Not fat. Just fine. 

Everyone just figured Arnold and Helga were a couple because they spent so much time with each other. Only Phoebe and Gerald knew. 

Arnold still wasn't sure if he could like Helga. It seemed like he was sort of obligated to like her. Because, after all, they were having a baby. The same thing was going on with Helga. She still really adored Arnold, but yet she didn't know what to do with him or herself. 

"You know, Helga…" began Arnold one day in the kitchen. 

"What?" she asked absent-mindedly as she read her book. 

"You really shouldn't be freaking yourself out about labor and crap this early." 

Helga closed her book and looked at Arnold. "I just want to be informed…" 

"You can't handle it. Remember last night? You broke down crying because you broke a nail and you claimed 'if I can't handle a broken nail, how can I go through labor?'" 

Helga rolled her eyes. "It's true…you know what?" 

"What?" Arnold opened the fridge and took out the milk carton. 

"Sooner or later, I'm going to start showing." 

"Showing what?" 

"The stomach. My stomach. It's going to be a big balloon." She mumbled and got out of her seat. "I'm going to look so ugly…" She walked out of the kitchen to the living room. 

"No you won't." He poured some milk into a tall glass. 

Helga walked back in the kitchen with a pillow stuffed under her shirt. "Does this look appealing to you?" 

Arnold spit out his milk and chuckled. He put the glass back on the counter. 

"Stupid idiot." She took out the pillow from underneath her shirt and started hitting Arnold with it. 

"Hey! That's not very nice…you're going to teach our kids bad manners," joked Arnold. He managed to grab the pillow from Helga's grasp. "Play nice." 

Helga snatched it back and stuck out her tongue. Then flinged the pillow in his face. She laughed histerically and ran off. "Loser," she called out. 

"I'll get you!" He shouted, chasing after her. 

He caught up with her in the living room. They were on opposite ends of the coffee table. Helga's hand was still griping the pillow. She was slightly crouched over, getting ready to pounce, or run. Or something. 

"You've got no where to run!" He laughed sinisterly. 

Helga threw the pillow at his head and ran up the stairs. Arnold coughed out feathers and quickly ran up after her. As he reached the top of the stairs, he looked both ways to see no one. Quietly, he tiptoed down the hall to see that the stairs to his room were pulled down. 

"Oh, puh-lease," mumbled Arnold. "This is too easy…" he quietly walked up the steps and into his room. His eyes scanned the room. There was a muffled giggling from behind his sofa. Arnold chuckled softly to himself and walked to the sofa. Suddenly Helga popped out and hit him with another pillow. 

She laughed. 

"You little…" he growled and pinned her down on the sofa. They both laughed together. Helga wrinkled her nose and Arnold smiled…she looked so good. Gradually, their laughing eased and Arnold was still on top of Helga. Pinned her down, his hands on opposite sides of her body. Her hair was all messy. 

Helga looked at him with her eyes all bright. She smiled lightly and pulled her hand through his hair. He could've…he was about to…his body leaned towards her…just as Helga was getting ready for a kiss…he pulled away. 

***

3 months later…

Helga was getting moody. She was yelling, pulling out her hair and always complaining that she was starting to get fat. Arnold couldn't take this kind of crap.

Helga groaned. "Arnold…I can't keep going to school like this. Soon I won't be able to fit into any of my clothes." 

"We'll just buy you new clothes," he replied, writing in his notebook. 

"All those pregnancy clothes are so ugly though. They're all…blah…" 

"Oh well. Deal with it." 

Helga rolled her eyes and put her hands on her stomach and looked at herself in the mirror. She turned to the side and looked. She ran her hands down her thighs and lifted them up. "My hips are getting big." 

"No they're not," Arnold replied. 

"Yes they are. You just haven't noticed." 

"I see you everyday. They're not big. They're not supposed to get big…not really." 

"Blah, blah, blah. This isn't _your_ body, ok Arnold? You should have no opinion!" 

"I'm the one who sees your body every fuckin' morning and every fuckin' night. So I should be able to fuckin' tell," he snapped.

Helga's jaw dropped and she put both her hands on her stomach. "Don't talk like that in front of the baby!" She slightly turned away. 

Arnold slammed his head on the table. "Helga," he said with his nose all squished. "Please. Don't start this again." 

She crossed her arms. "I have no idea what you're talking about." 

"You know very well what I'm talking about. You always start these little arguments." 

"I do not!" she snapped.

"Yes you do. Always complaining about your body and about how you're not a perfect sized 5 anymore…" 

"Well, it's true. Besides, you should be just agreeing with me!" 

"plaire à…faire taire…" he mumbled in French. (*1)

Helga stuck out her tongue. "Salut, imbécile…"(*2)she spat, storming out of his room. 

_Just let it go,_ Arnold thought. _Don't start it again…_He gripped his pencil and continued his writing. But then his hand turned into jello and he couldn't write anymore. He flinged the pencil at his computer.

"C'mon, Helga…" he shouted, walking out of his room. 

He ran up to her room. The door was locked. "Damnit," he murmered. "Open the door, Helga…" He pounded on the door with his right hand and tried opening the door with his other. 

"Why should I?" She shouted. She was leaning against the door, with her amrs crossed over her chest. 

"Please?" he wailed. Soon enough, he got on his knees, still pounding on the door. "C'mon, Helga…I'm sorry."

"Go on," she shouted back. 

He pressed his face against the door. "I'm sorry…I shouldn't have irked you like that." He sighed. "It's just that sometimes I forget that you're pregnant and that I'm living with you." 

"How can you forget?" 

"I don't know. It's just…I get so caught up in school and all this crap. Then I have to worry about this baby. And you."

"You know, you don't have to worry about me. I told you so…" 

"I want to. Because I care about you." He put his palm against the door. "It just takes a while for me to comprehend these things." 

Helga slid down to the ground and sat there. She stayed silent. 

"It seems like this is all a dream," he began. "But it's not. It's reality. And I – I…" his voice trailed off. 

If he says it, I'll open the door…if he doesn't…then… 

"I can't stand to see you hurt." He lowered his head. 

"I'm tired, Arnold," lied Helga. "Just go back to your room." 

"Will you be okay?" 

"Yes…just go." 

Arnold got up from the floor and slowly walked away. 

Helga sighed and looked up at the dark ceiling. "Crimety…" 

***

"Phebes, I have to find some good clothes. You know? Like some things that are flabby." 

"Helga, you're not fat yet!" replied Phoebe. The two of them were walking in the mall with nothing in their hands. Helga wanted to buy something so badly. She needed something to make herself feel good. 

"Soon I will. And then you'll be seeing me in that store." She pointed to the maternity clothes shop. "Yup…I'll be wearing overalls and baggy shirts." 

"Are you still planning on going to school though?" Phoebe asked curiously. 

"Well, yeah. Until the baby's born. Then I'm gonna put her or him up for adoption." 

"Surely you don't mean that, do you Helga?" 

"I do." She said. "I really do. I mean, why would I want to keep a stupid baby for? They're good for nothing. Ya hear? Nothing." 

"They're sweet…it's going to be really hard to let them go once you've seen them." 

"I just won't look the baby in the eye." 

"So are you saying you just don't care about this baby?" 

Helga shrugged. "I'm not sure yet. I didn't make-up my mind." 

"You only have five months left." 

Helga sighed. "Phebes, do you reckon I should just stop going to school?" 

"It's up to you, Helga. I mean, it's not a problem for you curently. But…" 

"Okay. I catch your drift." Helga sighed again. "Once people start finding out about this…I'm going to do something about it." 

"Let's hope they don't find out." 

"Let's hope." 

"How are you and Arnold doing?" They walked into a shop. 

"We're okay. I mean we get into billions and billions of fights. But, I guess everything's fine." 

"Is he okay with the fact that you're going to give away his baby?" 

Helga cleared her throat. "Ahem, not _his_ baby. _My_ baby." 

"It's _both_ of yours." 

Helga rolled her eyes. "Fine…" 

"So is he?" 

"Okay with this?" 

"Yeah." 

"Well, I don't know," she murmered. "I haven't actually told him about my plan." 

"Why not?!" Phoebe ranted.

Helga shrugged. "I just didn't feel like it." She looked at the sore look on Phoebe's face. "Okay, I'll tell him some other time. I promise, okay? I'm not even sure that I'm going to give it away. So when I do decide, I'll tell him. Ok?" 

"Okay." 

"Crap," Helga groaned, hitting the mirror on the wall. 

"What is it?" 

"I hate my life…" 

"Hey Helga…" began Arnold. 

"What is it?" She was reading a book. 

"Will you be okay by yourself tonight?" 

"Uh, yeah. But I don't see why I would be by myself tonight…" She was still reading. 

"Grandpa and Grandma are gone for Bingo night, Oskar and his wife are out on their anniversary night, Ernie is out with his friends, Mr. Hyuen is out for the week on a trip to China. And I…" 

"Yes?" 

"And I am going out on a date." 

"What?" Helga closed her book. "You're going out on a what?" 

"A date." He buttoned up his dress shirt. He was wearing a blue dress shirt and black dress pants. He looked so good…better than ever. She shook her head. 

"With…who?" 

"Lila," Arnold coughed. 

Helga blinked. "And where are the two of you going?" She rolled her fingers on the table. 

"Le Paris…"

Helga nodded absent-mindedly. "So, why didn't you tell me this before?" 

"I just made the date this morning. And you were out with Phoebe all day." 

"Oh. I see." 

"You don't have a problem with it, do you?" He looked at her intensely. 

"Me?" She paused. "No, of course not…I'm fine. I mean, why should I care?" She leaned back in her chair. 

Arnold nodded. "Good. I just wanted to clear it up with you. I mean, I've really wanted to go on this date with her for months…" 

"Months?"

"Yeah. But I just wasn't sure about what you would do. And I guess I was still scared or something." 

Helga nodded blankly. "So, you weren't scared of me?" 

Arnold shrugged. "We're friends…" 

_Just four months ago you wanted to be more than friends you stupid asshole…_

"Right…just friends…" Helga said in a slight raise in her voice. 

There was an awkward silence. 

"When should I expect you home?" 

"Around ten. Ten-thirty…" 

Helga nodded again. "Okay, well, have fun." 

Arnold walked out of the kitchen. Helga stood still until she heard the front door close and the engine start. 

"Bastard," she growled, flinging her book across the room. She put her finger under her nose and sniffed. 

**A/N:: ** Sorry this chapter is short…there's not much for her to do in this stage. BUT I PROMISE in the next chapter there is going to be A LOT of DRAMA…keyword: DRAMA…Read between the lines: Suicide…*cough* anyways…The french words (excuse me if my grammar was wrong) 

Please…shut up Bye…ass. (Actually, I looked up "ass" but then they said "as in idiot: …." So…you know.) 

Please r/r! Excuse my spelling errors…


	5. I'll Stand By You

Chapter Five: I'll Stand By You 

Mid sixth month, and in the seventh too. 

Helga starts to show. 

Whoa. 

She tries to hide it during school,

The last thing she was doing…

Was making the guys drool. 

Her feet got big, and her hands did too. 

The kids looked at her as if she belonged in the zoo.

But enough with this, 

Her heart is also broken 

To see Lila and Arnold's 

First kiss. 

"Mmm," mumbled Helga. "Look at that cake. It looks so good!" She gazed at a big chocolate cake on display at the bakery. 

"Yeah, it does look good," replied Arnold. 

"Do you think we can buy it? I'm getting awfully hungry." Her hands were on the glass, as her eyes were still pinned on it. 

"The whole thing?" Arnold questioned. "Are you sure we'll be able to eat all that?" 

"Who ever said 'we'? I can…surely…" 

Arnold chuckled slightly. "Ever since you started to show more…you've gotten very hungry." 

"Face it, Arnoldo. I need food." 

Arnold looked at the cake and the price tag next to it. "Damn, Helga, it's twenty-five bucks. I'm not spending that much on one cake. We already spend that much just for your meals." 

Helga sighed. "I guess…" 

"That sort of money pays for a wedding cake. Not an every day pregnancy cake." 

He pulled her away from the window display. 

"Speaking of weddings…" 

"What about weddings?" asked Arnold as they walked in the cool spring air. 

"What do you think about weddings?" 

"I think you should only get married when you're in love." 

"Yeah…." 

"You're not thinking of…" 

"Uh, no. No," said Helga promptly. She sighed slightly. "So, uh, how are you and Lila doing?" 

"Fine…just fine." 

"Does she know about the two of us?" 

"Not completely." 

"Not completely? What's that supposed to mean?" 

"I just told her that you're living with me because your parents kicked me out. That's all." 

Helga rolled her eyes and shoved Arnold. "Idiot." 

"What was I supposed to say? I really like her, and I don't want her to run off." 

Helga nodded blankly. "Would you call yourselves a couple now?" 

"Well, we're just going out. I mean, even after going out for a couple of months, I say just going out." 

Helga nodded again. "I see." 

"C'mon, cheer up Helga. I'll buy you a snack before we get home." He put his arm around her. 

Helga forced herself to smile. "Like pickles and peanut butter?" She asked anxiously. 

Arnold made a sick face. "Yes…Just for you." 

"Fantastic! Maybe even with some sardines?" 

"Eew." 

***

Helga stumbled out of her bed. Everything seemed so blurry. Probably because her eyes were half asleep and it was the middle of the night. Her head was hurting like crazy and she didn't know why. She walked into her bathroom and opened the cabinet door. 

Inside, you see…

Bottles of advil,

Tylenol,

And such…

SO many of them. Instantly, she just grabbed one and poured some in her hand. She poured herself a cup of water and put the pills in her mouth, as she gulped it down with the water. 

Was she even supposed to be doing this? 

Oh she didn't care. 

All she wanted to do was get over with these nine months and go back to normal. 

But would she ever be normal again? 

Then her head began to spin again. Soon everyone would figure out she was pregnant. It would be soo easy to tell. No one fat would look the way you look if you were pregnant. What would she do? Go crazy, perhaps. 

"My, my, Helga," began Rhonda. "You are getting quite big, aren't you?" She was talking to her in the halls during lunch. 

Helga ignored her comment. 

"I mean, really, have you been eating a bit too much of those Gummi Bears lately?" She scoffed and put her hand on her hip, raising her eyebrow. 

"Gee Rhonda, I thought you'd never notice." 

"You used to be so thin…so nice looking. And look at you now. In a matter of a month, you get huge!" She laughed. "It's as if you were pregnant or something…" 

Helga's eyes widened. 

"Oh my fuckin' Goddess…" Rhonda murmered, seeing the expression on Helga's face. "You're pregnant, _are_n't you?" 

"What are you talking about?" Helga lied. 

"This explains _every_thing!" She squealed. "Who's the father?" 

"No one." 

"There _has_ to be a father!! Is it George? Mark?" 

"No. No." 

"Park?? Michael?? Am I getting closer?" 

"NO! Now leave. Go fly off and spread happiness to some other unfortunate person." Helga tried shooing her off. 

"It's Arnold isn't it?" She said as-a-matter-of-factly. 

Helga couldn't help it, but her cheeks turned a bright pink. 

"Oh my God! This is _too _good to be true!" Suddenly she gasped. "But isn't Arnold with Lila?" 

"Not technically…just 'going out'," stated Helga. She only said that because Arnold had told her that. 

Rhonda grinned. "This is so sweet…I have to tell someone." 

"Wait, Rhonda!" Helga gasped. 

But it was too late. Rhonda already ran off to tell someone. "Good Grief," she murmered. Then she could feel eyes piercing on her. People mumbling among themselves. Getting closer…getting louder. Making her head spin. 

_I have to go see Arnold_, Helga thought. _He'll know what to do._

She ran out of the halls, and frantically searched. "Okay, okay, so it's lunch time…He uh usually hangs out in the…" Helga squinted and looked up, pursing her lips. "Basketball courts! Yes. No…uh, the Main Quad! Yes, Okay." Helga ran to the Main Quad. 

To see Arnold and Lila just sitting together on the cement steps. 

_She'll understand if I steal Arnold for a minute. _Helga pushed her way through the groups of people. 

"Move it, damnit," she grumbled. 

As she pushed away the last group of people, her breath caught in her chest. 

Could her eyes have diseived her? 

No it couldn't be…

Has Arnold been lying to her? 

Locked are their lips…Lila's and Arnold's. 

His arm was around her whole body. Her hands were behind his neck. 

Their bodies were so close to each other. Helga shook her head. No…no. This can't be. 

She was too hurt to cry. Hit too hard to think. The bell rang. Everyone shuffled around her. How can she possibly survive the rest of this day? 

Helga walked down the street with a blank stare on her face. For the second of the day, everyone was saying how sorry they were for her. Thankfully people at the school weren't inconsiderate assholes. But she hated when people told her that they felt sorry for her. To add to all those worries, Arnold was sticking his tongue down Lila's throat. Whatever happened to the two of them? 

He has obligations, you know. He has to be there for Helga. And for the baby. And not with Lila. It's not like Lila was having his baby. Helga was. Helga! He should love her! He should be kissing her in the halls…holding her hands, and taking her books. 

Just friends. How stupid are those two words? She thought it meant nothing. But…it did. He really did mean it. 

How stupid could she have been? 

…Not stupid enough…

She opened the door and walked inside. For some reason it was eerily quiet. Then it happened. Helga began to cry. Her eyes filled with tears, and she couldn't help but blink. Water poured from her two eyes like crazy. It was stupid. Why was she crying? 

Her backpack just dropped on the ground. No one was home. Good thing too. What are the consequences of Helga allowing herself to cry so much? She never had to cry this much. 

How she wanted to fling herself on the sofa, let her lie on her stomach. But her stomach was too big to let her do that. "Wh-hy…" she wailed. 

She walked herself to the kitchen, where she cried on the table. Her arms were folded, and her head rested on them. Her eyes were still weeping. Sniffing, she raised her head and looked around as her eyes began to dry. 

Then her eyes caught a glimpse of the cutting board with a lonely knife on it. 

Slowly, she got up from the chair and straightened up. Her tongue went over her front teeth as she walked towards it. 

The front door opened. Arnold walked in. "Helga…I was waiting for you for a long time in the parking lot, where were you?" He wondered aloud. He dropped off his backpack next to Helga's. "I thought I was going to bring you home. Everyone thought I looked like a fuckin' idiot." 

Helga touched the cool steel with her fingers and rubbed them together. She drew in a deep breath and held the wooden handle and lifted it up. 

Arnold unbuttoned the first two buttons of his shirt and walked into the kitchen. "Helga!" He exclaimed. "What the hell are you doing?" His voice was low, and he tried staying calm. 

Helga looked away from him. "Why would you care?" 

"You're not planning to…" 

Helga put the tip of the knife to her neck. "Why should I even stay here?" her voice shook. 

Arnold's jaw dropped. "Because you have a baby! You're going to have a baby!" 

"This baby has been nothing but trouble for me. Headaches every day, back pains…and this annoying stomach. Just sticking out. Everyone knows in school now," she said dryly. "Everyone." 

"So what?" Arnold was nervous…he was approaching her very slowly. 

"Don't even get near me, Arnold." She shook her head. "I can't take this anymore. I'm only 17! I'm not capable of having this baby. I don't want to go through this anymore. I can't…I won't. I…this is just the baby's fault," she wailed. She put the knife to her stomach. 

"Helga! No!" Arnold gasped. He reached out for her, though she was fifteen feet away. 

"I hate this baby. I hate this life. I hate you and Lila…and Rhonda. And that stupid party…This stupid baby," she murmered, tears streaming down her face. "Why shouldn't I kill this baby? Why should I be the one who has to be cursed to have this baby…huh? Why?" 

Her grip tightened.

Arnold gulped. He didn't know what to say. What can you say to a woman who's going crazy? Was it really going crazy? 

"C'mon Helga. Be reasonable…don't kill the baby just because you think it's ruining your life." He walked towards her carefully. "Don't…you know it's wrong. You could make your life worse just by doing it. Ya know? You could get in jail for homocide or something…" 

Helga still cried, the knife pressed against her stomach. 

"We have to stay strong, ok?" He gently touched her arm. 

We. Helga cried harder. "We?" 

"Yes. We…please, Helga. Drop the knife. It's the right thing to do. I love you too much to let you do this." 

Helga looked up and sniffed. 

"Please, just be sensible. Please just be reasonable…" he pleaded. 

Helga dropped the knife on the ground and cringed down crying. "Oh Arnold…my life is such a mess." 

Arnold crouched down next to her and rocked her in his arms. "Ssh, don't worry Helga. We'll get through this. I promise you. It's not the end of the world." 

Helga cried. "I can't handle this…I'm too young. And I left my family…for this baby." Her voice cracked. 

"It's okay, Helga. It's okay. I'll stand by you. Always." He kissed the top of her head. "Just calm down and relax. It seems like you've had a hard day." 

Helga tried to steady her breath. "I saw you and Lila kiss," she said blankly. 

Arnold stayed quiet and kept his hold on her. 

Helga cooled off after a while. She decided to just stay in school, and no one seemed to care or notice her … differences. Probabl because Arnold had a talk with them all, she thought. After all, he was the class president. 

"So, Arnold…" began Lila. They were on a date. 

"Yeah, Lila?" 

"Are we ever going to move forward?" 

"Move forward?" 

"Yes, like maybe I could wear your class ring…or we can actually be called a 'couple'?" 

"Well, uh, I don't know." 

"You don't know?" she repeated. 

"Um, no." 

"You know, whenever we walk together, everyone's thinking I'm some kind of a whore because I'm going out with you and Helga's having your baby." 

"I understand…" 

"No you don't. They start making me mad. I want them to know that you love me. And not Helga. Can you understand that?" 

Arnold nodded. 

"So I want to know. What are you two going to do with the baby?" 

"We've been discussing things…but we're not sure…" 

"Tell me now, Arnold. Is it me, or Helga?" 

***

Arnold walked in through the door. What a crappy day. 

"Oh my God, Arnold!" Helga squealed. "Come here, come here! Hurry!" urged Helga from the living room. 

Arnold raised an eyebrow and quickly ran into the living room. "What happened? What is it?" He looked worried. 

"Feel," she said in almost a whisper. Arnold walked up to her nervously. She took his hand and placed it on the stomach. "Can you feel it?" 

Arnold smiled. His whole face brightened. "It's kicking…the baby's kicking." He began to chuckle. 

"Sure is…wonderful, isn't it?" She smiled. 

"When did the baby start kicking?" He wondered. 

"I duno, during school I suppose. But you were so busy, and I couldn't find you, I figured I'd tell you later." 

Arnold sat next to her, with his hand still on her stomach. "This is amazing…"

"Yeah. It is." 

"Too bad we're going to have to give her away…" 

Helga sighed slightly. "Yeah…well…then we'll have nothing to worry about after birth and all. And some older couple will be happy." 

Arnold nodded. He leande over and kissed her cheek. "I'm so happy right now." 

Helga grinned at him. 

**A/N:** Isn't Lila such a bitch? Hahahaha…well…there's another chapter coming. So…yeah. No one's reviewing anymore =(. Be nice and review for me…oh, and if you want to be notified about my next chapter…please tell me. It'll be a big event. 

Oh and…I'm nominated for an award!? Crazy, man…well…yeah. How did that happen…? Well check out all the nominees: http://www.fanfiction.net/read.php?storyid=989687 alright? Your vote counts! … right … there are so subliminal messages in this A/N…I just tell ya straight up. 


	6. What's In a Name?

A/N: Welcome to Chapter six of How Could It Be?

Disclaimer (that I have always forgotten..) I DO NOT OWN ANY HEY ARNOLD CHARACTERS. ALL I DO IS PUT THEM IN MY STORIES…thank you. Now enjoy. 

Chapter Six: What's In A Name? 

"Hush little baby don't say a word," murmured Helga. "Mama's gonna buy you a mocking bird. And if that mocking bird don't sing, Mama's gonna buy you a…a…" 

"Diamond ring," continued Arnold in a singing tone. 

"Oh, right!" She cleared her throat. "And if that diamond ring don't…uh…" 

Arnold thought for a second. "Uh…" 

"You don't know?!" she complained. "How can we sing to the baby if you don't know the lullaby!" 

"Okay, that's okay! You know plenty of other songs to lull the baby with. Just don't worry so much, Helga," he assured her. 

Helga sighed. "I guess you're right." Suddenly she gasped. 

"What's wrong?" he asked involuntarily. 

"Where's the baby going to sleep?" 

"I guess we'll find some place…" Arnold murmured. "But, uh, with all do respect, Helga, aren't we going to give away the baby?" 

"Oh. Yeah." She sounded very disappointed. Like she really actually wanted to keep the baby. But what would a 17 year old do with a baby? …Nothing… she opened the bag of Cheetos next to her and the jar of peanut butter. Yes, she ate them together. (A/N: And frankly, they taste quite interesting…) 

There was silence. 

"Well, I figure I might as well name the baby. We can't give it away without a name," said Helga with her mouth full of peanut butter. 

"Yeah, ok. So…what are the names you've chosen?" 

"What makes you so sure I've already chosen names?" she snapped. 

"Because, I know you Helga. We practically live together. Now tell me, what names have you chosen?" He said as-a-matter-of-factly. 

Helga rolled her eyes and took a piece of paper out from her back pocket. "I _did_ make a _tiny _list." She unfolded the paper. "If it's a girl, I'd name her Jacqueline, Juliet, Margaret, Josie or Belle. If it's a boy, I'd name him Peter,  Robbie, Kevin, Mikey, or Arnold." She covered her mouth. "Err…"

"Arnold?" he repeated.

Helga still had her hands over her mouth and nodded. 

"May I ask why?" He rested his arms on the back of his chair. 

She sighed and put her hands down. "Because I made this list in the fourth grade. I just dug it up last weekend. I figured that if I didn't marry you I would at least name my kid after you." 

"You wanted to marry me?" 

She looked away. "Yes…I wanted to."

"You had a crush on me?" 

"If you'd call it a crush…" _It was more like madly in love._

Arnold nodded as if he understood what she was talking about. "Do you still have a crush on me?" 

Helga rolled her eyes. "Puh-lease, Arnoldo." 

Arnold looked slightly disappointed. Just slightly. "I see." 

"But, you're a good person…I mean, I _would_…er…well. You're taken already anyways." 

"I am?" 

"Does the word 'Lila' ring a bell?" 

Arnold let out a heavy sigh. "Oh…Her," he replied dryly. 

" 'Oh her'?" Helga said. "Oh…her? Are you feeling okay, Arnold? Lately it seems that you're the one who's having pregnancy hormones, and not me." 

Arnold waved his hand at her. "Yeah, I'm okay." 

"Is it girl trouble, Sonny?" she laughed. 

"It'll all blow over." He put his feet on the table and glanced at the clock on the wall. "Holy…Helga!" 

Helga widened her eyes. "What?" 

"It's time to go to the doctor's!" he jumped out of his seat. 

"Oh…dear…" 

He pulled her out of her seat. "Hurry, cuz then I can get back to go on a date with Lila." 

"Okay, Helga, Arnold…this is going to be a special treat for you both. You'll get to see your baby the closest to fully developed than when its born," said the doctor. "And you two have chosen not to know the gender until later…?" 

"That's right!" Helga said instantly. "So it'll be easier to let go…" 

The doctor showed them the baby on the little monitor. It was black and white (A/N: I think maybe they have these things in color now?!) and the two of them saw their baby moving around, well, fidgeting a little. Its hand moving. 

Helga swore she would've cried. 

Arnold couldn't believe it either. Sure, they've seen it in their textbooks before, but never like _this._

The doctor looked more intently at the baby and wrote things down on her clipboard. "Everything seems in order here…I don't think there should be any problems," said the doctor. 

Helga smiled.

"I'll just leave the two of you here for a while." She walked out the door. 

"Look at that, Arnold," grinned Helga. "Isn't our baby beautiful?" 

_Our,_he thought. He chuckled slightly. "Yes…" he looked closely at the monitor, blocking Helga's view.

"What…what are you _doing_?" Helga complained. 

"Checking…" he murmured.

"Checking what?!" 

"If it's a boy or a girl." 

"Arnold!" She snapped, managing to kick him in the stomach. "We don't want to grow too attached. OK?" 

Arnold backed away. "Okay, okay! Don't get all bent out of shape!" 

"If you haven't already noticed, I _am_ bent out of shape." 

"More like molded out of shape," he murmured. 

"Excuse me?" 

"Nothing…" 

"That's what I thought." 

Arnold looked around the room and looked at the baby pictures on the wall. They were all of the doctor's former patients' babies. He smiled at the cute little chubby faces. 

"Aren't they adorable?" commented the doctor as she walked in the door. 

Arnold nodded. "Very cute." 

"All of the new mothers write me long letters and send millions of pictures of their little bundles of joy," she began. "They always can't believe that they had such a miracle happen to them. I can't understand why some people abandon their children." 

Helga looked down. _I can,_ she thought. "What time is it?" she wondered aloud. 

The doctor glanced at her wristwatch. "It's about 4:30." 

"Damnit," muttered Arnold, slapping his forehead. 

"What?" 

"I was supposed to pick Lila up for a date half an hour ago…" He sighed. 

Everyone in school was all hyped up about the Spring Fling formal. All the girls were gossiping about who asked who to the dance, which girls had an appointment to the hair dresser, which girls had the rich limos, and which boys could afford the really expensive corsages. 

Helga couldn't be part of this conversation. Usually tons of guys would go up to her and ask her out to these dances. But now they stayed away from her. 

"Girls, I got the fab dress at Paris!" squealed Rhonda. "It's _only_ made by the best designers. It cost $500 and is custom made for _moi_." 

"Oh gee, Rhonda…that's just…fab," replied Helga. 

"So, Arnold. Are we going to be going to the Spring Fling?" Lila asked. "I bought a dress…I made appointments to get my hair done." 

"I know, I know," he grumbled. 

"So are we?" 

"What?" he asked absent-mindedly. 

"Going to the Spring Fling! Honestly, Arnold, it's like I don't even exist anymore." She flinged her hands up in the air in exasperation. "All you ever worry about is Helga. It's like you want to marry her or something. But may I remind you, Arnold…_we_ are a couple. Not you and Helga, but you and me." 

Arnold rubbed his hands together. "Can we talk about this later?" 

"There'll be no more laters until you answer my question: Are you taking me to the Spring Fling?" Her hands were on her hips and she had her right leg out. 

"…Yes. I'm taking you to the Spring Fling and buying you the prettiest corsage." 

Lila smiled and hugged him. "That's what I thought." 

The bell rang and everyone began to walk to class. Helga was due in a couple of months, Lila thinks he's a total pig, and it was almost time for finals, oh, and he had to find a family to give their baby to. 

What else could add to his utter happiness? 

After school, he waited in the parking lot for Helga. He was leaning against his car and humming to himself. Lately, Helga had been into the soft rock and love songs stuff. Whenever she heard those sad, romantic songs like Richard Marx's "Right Here Waiting" she burst into tears. Then when she hears something even sweeter like "Because You Love Me" by Celine Dion, she just couldn't stop crying. 

It made Arnold a little embarrassed at times. At stop lights, when Helga cried, the people in the cars next to them would stare and give Arnold the what-have-you-done-you-ungrateful-bastard look. 

"Hey Arnold!" Helga shouted from five cars away. "Look alive!" 

Arnold grinned and straightened up. He watched as she clumsily glided across the asphalt. When was the last time he watched her walk? Never really. Not until now. He got in the car and warmed up the engine. Helga plumped in the passenger seat next to him. "Man, my back hurts." 

"Nice to see you too," he chuckled and pulled out of the parking lot. 

"Are you going to the Spring Fling with Lila?" She asked. 

"Why?" he gave her a suspicious look.

"Because, I'm just curious." She glanced at him. "You don't think I'm going to make her eat a poison apple, do you?" She laughed. "So are you going with her?" 

"Yes. I guess so. It's either that or die…" 

Helga laughed again. "Die?" 

"Yeah, die. She's really uptight about us right now." 

"Us as in you and me? Or as in…"

"Both."

"Wow, you're going to have fun at the dance." 

"Are you going to go?" He wondered. 

"Nah, I figure I'd just stay home and watch some TV. What would a pregnant girl do at a formal dance? My feet can't even fit in my high heels." 

***

Helga whistled as Arnold walked down the stairs wearing a tux. 

"Snazzy," she commented. "Tell me, why are you dressed like a groom again?" 

"Lila thought it would look nice." He adjusted his little black bow tie, which came undone. "Damn, I can't get this stupid piece of shit…" 

Helga walked up to him and tied his bow for him. "It's all in the wrist," she giggled and glanced at the clock on the wall. "It's 7:00! You'd better go get her now before she thinks you're leaving her for me again." 

"Ha…ha…" he smirked. "Are you sure you'll be okay?" 

"Perfectly fine!" She stuck out both her thumbs. "Go…" she began to push him out the door. 

"If you need me, you know, just call my cell…" 

"I know, I know…" She was still pushing him. 

"The number is 546-129…" 

"3," she finished. "I know. Now go!" she urged. "I'll be fine. Now have fun." She shoved him out the door. 

Arnold got in the car and drove off to pick up Lila. 

He drove and listened to the love song station. He hummed to the song of Elton John's "Your Song" (A/N: Don't you guys LOVE that song?) and thought of Helga again. 

_Damnit,_ he thought, _why do I  keep thinking about her? This is a night for fun. Not for thinking about Helga. It's not your problem that she chose to stay home…_

He parked his car in front of Lila's drive way and walked to the door. Knock, knock. 

Excitedly, Lila opened the door and grinned stupidly. She reminded Arnold of a big daisy because of what she was wearing. A yellow dress with green flowers on it. Just a little strange…

"I thought you'd never come!" she exclaimed. "Where's my corsage?" 

Arnold took it out of his pocket and put it on her wrist. It was made of roses and leaves. 

"Aw, it's beautiful…you shouldn't have!" her arm linked his as they walked to his car. "By the way, Arnold. You look fantastic." 

"You look…special, Lila. Very special." 

They drove to the school gym. The music pounded loudly. Lila was all happy-go-lucky. And Arnold just couldn't make himself smile. As they walked in, he was over-whelmed with all the people and the crappy decorations they got from the dollar store. 

He was even surprised to see people dressed as crudely as Lila. In the corner, Lila and Gerald were all lovey-dovey. A group of guys were gathered in a circle as they all jumped in unison. 

Fun.

"Get me some punch, will you?" said Lila. 

Arnold nodded and walked away from her. Happily. At the punch bowl he was surprised by Gerald. 

"Hey man," Gerald greeted. 

"Hey," replied Arnold. 

"Here with Helga?" 

"No…Lila," he said dryly. 

"Oh." 

"How are you and Phoebe anyway?" 

"Awesome…and I finally did it." 

"Did it?" Arnold asked blankly. 

"I said it. I told her I loved her." 

Arnold's face brightened. "No kidding?" 

Gerald shook his head. "I just can't believe it. Everywhere I looked, there she was. All I could see was her. I just couldn't get her out of my mind. And that's when I knew that I had to tell her. I couldn't keep it to myself anymore." 

Then his pants started to ring. Arnold took his phone out of his pocket and put it to his ear. "Helga?" 

"Arnold," she groaned from the other end of the line. "My stomach is hurting like crazy…come home…please." 

Arnold dropped his cup of punch. "Okay, just stay there. I'll be there in a flash." He pressed the end button and put the cell phone back in his pants. 

"Is everything ok?" worried Gerald.  

"I have to get home to Helga," he murmured to himself.

"What?" Gerald shouted over the music. 

"I gotta go," shouted Arnold back. He began walking away, shuffling through the people. Squeezing between the dancers. 

"Arnold!" snapped Lila. She stood in front of his path. "Where's my punch?" 

"Sorry, I…" 

Suddenly Lila sneezed. "Ouch," she mumbled, scratching her wrist. "I'm getting kind of itchy." 

"You're getting kind of bumpy too," noted Arnold. 

She touched her face. "Oh my God. I'm breaking out. Arnold!" she groaned. "I must be allergic to this…AaACcHhhOO! Rose!" 

Arnold covered his mouth as he chuckled. "I gotta go, Lila," he urged.

"Why? You have to escort me to the nurse!" She stomped her foot on the wooden floor. 

"Look, Helga's in trouble and I have to get home," he growled at her. "Now move out of the way." 

"It's always Helga, Helga, Helga. You know I have a problem right now too! What's more important right now?" 

"Definitely not you," he snapped back, pushing her aside. 

"FINE…IT'S OVER!" She screamed. Then sneezed. 

Arnold ran out of the gym and raced to his car. He pulled the door open and jumped in, quickly starting the engine and flooring the pedal. 

As he approached the boarding house, he stopped the car half way on the curb. Not even bothering to close the door behind him, he ran inside. "Helga?" he called. 

"Arnold," she cried. 

Arnold followed her voice upstairs to her room and found her sitting on the floor. 

"I don't feel very good," she told him. 

**A/N: **in the next chapter, the dreaded questions will finally be answered! Is the baby a boy or a girl? What's wrong with Helga? Are they really going to give the baby away?! Is there going to be a sequal once this is over?? We'll talk about that later…

School is tiring. 


	7. I'm Waiting For You

A/N: Now is time for the final installment of…How Could It Be? Please, read and enjoy. But don't forget to review! Fasten your seatbelts and get ready for a bumpy ride. Chapter Seven: I'm waiting for you

Arnold drove Helga to the hospital and went into the emergency room. Helga was groaning and tears dropped from her eyes as Arnold held her tightly to the desk. 

"What's wrong?" the receptionist asked urgently.

"I don't know," panted Arnold. "She just started getting these pains…" 

"Is she in labor?" 

"She's still a month away from it." 

"What's the doctor's name?" 

"Uh, doctor Granger." 

The nurse nodded and picked up the telephone and dialed a number. "You'll be sent up to level three, and Dr. Granger will be there waiting for you." 

A nurse with a wheel chair arrived and she assisted Helga on it. They rolled to the elevator and were going up to level three. 

It was surprising to Arnold how scared he was. When was the last time he had been so nervous before? He couldn't think. His mind was blank. Seeing Helga in so much pain made him want to die. He couldn't take it. How he wanted to run off and leave her alone. 

But no. 

He's gone this far…and if Helga can do it, then he can too. 

The elevator doors opened and the nurse rushed Helga into a room. 

Dr. Granger and the nurse hurriedly made Helga put on a patient's gown as Arnold had to put one on over his tux too (of course he was putting it on in the hallway). They put her on the bed and stuck all that stuff on her wrists and such. 

Arnold walked in to see the doctor writing quickly on her clipboard, glancing at the monitor every three seconds. Helga was sweating and her eyes were closed as the nurse gave her pieces of ice to chew on. 

After ten minutes or so, Dr. Granger pulled Arnold aside. Out to the hallway. 

"Is she okay?" wondered Arnold. 

"Well," mumbled the doctor. "It seems here that the baby is having problems." 

"Problems?" _Problems…_he repeated in his mind. "What kind of problems?" 

"All I can say is this: if we can't get the baby out soon, there will be trouble." 

Arnold's mouth dried up. He gulped. "So what do you propose we do?" 

"I can give her an injection that'll make the process go a little faster." 

He nodded idly. The words couldn't get out of his mouth. Dr. Granger understood how he felt and just nodded along with him. They walked back into the room. Dr. Granger went to talk to the nurse and Arnold walked to Helga and stood beside her. 

"What's happening, Arnold?" she asked softly, her eyes still closed. 

"You'll be okay, just don't worry." He held her hand and massaged it with his fingers. 

The doctor told Helga what was going on. Helga reluctantly agreed to get the injection. The long needle was stuck in her stomach. Arnold wondered if it hurt her as much as it hurt him watching it. Dr. Granger left for a couple of hours so that the injection would start working and Helga would get contractions. 

Arnold took the opportunity to go to sleep on the chair next to her bed. He knew he was going to be up for a long time, and he's already had a pretty crappy night so far. 

Suddenly he awoke with a pain in his hand. Helga was gripping his hand tightly, breathing sharp breaths. "Ouch," she murmered. 

Arnold yawned. "How are you feeling?" 

Helga sighed. "Awful. You don't understand how painful this is…" She grimmaced. "Suddenly it seems that every ten seconds it starts hurting again. Oh, and, Arnold…" 

"Yeah?" 

"I hate you." 

"What?" 

"You did this to me…and you're going to pay. I hate you. I think that you are the worst person in the fuckin world, and I hope you die. And rot in hell." 

Arnold blinked. For the whole time Helga would've been yelling at him for being "stupid" but he was asleep. So she made it count. 

Then Dr. Granger came in through the door. "Hello again, Helga," she smiled. "Hello Arnold. Glad you woke up." 

Arnold smiled slightly. 

She looked at the monitor and looked at her notes. "You know what, Helga…I think it's time." 

"Time?" Helga squealed. 

The doctor nodded. 

Helga dropped her head back and gawked at the ceiling. "Crimeny…" she muttered. 

The doctor began to get her things ready with the nurse. 

"God, Arnold," said Helga. "I can't do this…I can't." She shook her red face. 

"You can, Helga…you can," assured Arnold. 

"Okay, Helga…" the doctor paused. "When I say so, push." 

Helga nodded. 

"Ready…set…push!" 

Helga groaned loudly, squeezing the life out of Arnold's hand. He couldn't believe how hard she could squeeze. He knew she was tough, but this was crazy. Helga was gritting her teeth, and her hair got on her face. 

She could hear nothing around her. Only the doctor's voice pounded in her head. _Oh God,_ she thought. _When will it be over?_

"One last push, Helga…c'mon, you can do it," the doctor urged. 

Helga drew in a sharp breath and held it as her face turned a darker shade of red. Arnold gritted his teeth in pain. Helga gave one last groan until she let her breath out in relief and opened her eyes. 

A second later, they heard a baby crying. Helga let Arnold's hand loose. 

"Congratulations, Helga," said Dr. Granger. "It's a girl." 

"Oh my God," whispered Helga. "A girl." She grinned and looked up at Arnold. "Did you hear that? A girl!" 

Arnold held her hand and kissed it. "Yeah…a baby girl." 

"Four pounds…ten ounces," mumbled the nurse. 

The doctor and the nurse began talking in the back of the room with the baby girl with them.

_Let me hold my baby,_ thought Helga. _Isn't this the time when I hold my baby?_

The nurse walked out the door with the baby in her arms. 

Helga's mouth opened as she reached out her hand towards the door. "What…what's going on? Where's she taking my baby?" 

Arnold began getting worried too. 

"Don't worry…the baby needs to be monitored for a while. Just to be on the safe side…okay?" Dr. Granger assured them. 

"Oh…okay…" Helga said reluctantly. 

"Just relax right now. You've had a baby!" Dr. Granger smiled. "Take it easy…" 

"When will we get to see her again?" Arnold wondered aloud. 

"She'll be in the next corridor being monitored. You can see her through the glass window. Other wise, if all goes well, the two of you will be able to see her tomorrow." 

Helga nodded and sniffed. Dr. Granger smiled again and walked out of the room. 

"Arnold," said Helga softly. 

"Yes?" he replied, looking into her soft eyes. She looked ready to cry. Arnold felt like crying too. 

"Hold me." 

Arnold got on the bed with her and wrapped his arms around her body. Coaxing her…comforting her as tears dropped from the tip of her nose. 

"I hope you don't mind if I put down in words…," whispered Arnold into her ear. "How wonderful life is, now you're in the world…"  

Helga sniffed. "What time is it?" 

Arnold glanced at his watch. "It's five past midnight." 

"Oh my gosh…so our baby was born May 10?" 

Arnold gave a slight chuckle. "Yep. May 10…" 

Helga smiled and cuddled up against him. "I hate your suit," she murmered before falling asleep. 

The next morning Arnold woke up early. Around 5 AM early. Outside, the sky was still dark blue and there was no hint of the sun at all. He found himself next to Helga whom was sound asleep and slightly snoring. Carefully he got out of the bed and tiptoed out the door. 

He walked through the empty corridors and stopped in front of the big glass window. He leaned against it with his arm on the glass as he looked at all the babies sleeping. There he saw their unnamed baby girl. 

She was wrapped in a pink blanket and was in an incubater. She looked so trapped. Just stuck in a box. What went so wrong? The four pound baby. So helpless. Too bad Arnold couldn't see her face because she was facing the opposite direction. 

Arnold groaned. 

Four hours later…

Arnold found himself sitting by Helga, watching her sleep. 

"Mm," she mumbled, stretching out her arms. Rubbing her eyes with the back of her hand. "Arnold?" 

"Yeah?" Arnold answered.

"Mmm…is it morning?" she yawned. 

"Sure is…it's about nine." 

Wearily, she sat up and smiled at Arnold. "You look tired. Have you slept at all?" 

"Eh," he murmered, moving his hand up and down. 

Helga sighed. "Oh Arnold…" 

"Yeah?" 

"I miss my baby…why'd they have to take her away?" Her whole face drooped and she looked at the corner of the room. "I was so stupid…" 

"No, you weren't. You were just scared…" coaxed Arnold. He took her hand in his again and rubbed it. 

Helga shook her head. "I was so stupid…all I want is to hold my baby." 

Suddenly the door opened. "Look who's here to see you," said the nurse cheerfully walking in. 

Helga's whole face brightened up to see her holding the baby. 

"There was just a little scare," said the nurse. "Your baby is perfectly fine…just misses her mommy." 

Arnold smirked as the nurse handed the baby to Helga. 

Helga cradeled the baby in her arms and grinned. "She's so tiny…" 

Arnold stood up, leaning over looking at her. 

"Isn't she beautiful, Arnold?" 

"Not as beautiful as you. But yes, she is the cutest baby in the world," smiled Arnold. 

Helga shook her head. "Wow, she has the most incredible blue eyes. They're just like your eyes." 

"She has your nose…" 

"Luckily she doesn't have your air head," chuckled Helga. 

"So have you two thought of a name for your bundle of joy?" The nurse wondered. 

Arnold looked at Helga, who looked back at Arnold. She thought for a second. "Uhh…Her name is going to be Jacqueline. Yes. Jacqueline Arnold." 

Arnold gave her a surprised look. "My last name?" 

"She _is_ your child…" 

"Jacqueline Arnold. What a darling name," commented the nurse. 

"Make that Jacqueline Leigh-Ann Arnold," corrected Arnold. 

"Jacqueline Leigh-Ann Arnold," repeated Helga. "Sounds magnifique." She giggled. 

"Wonderful. I'll just leave the two, err, the three of you alone," said the nurse softly. She walked out of the door and closed it behind her. 

Helga rocked Jacqueline in her arms. "She's so beautiful…so bright-eyed. I can't believe I brought her here…" 

Arnold grinned. "You were unbelievably incredible," he complimented. 

"Arnold," said Helga timidly. 

"Yes?" 

"I don't want to give her away." 

Arnold gave her a bewildered look. "Just last month you were so sure about giving her away. We've got couples wanting this baby…" 

Helga gulped. "But I don't want to give Jacqueline away. She's _my_ baby. And I'd like to keep it that way." 

"How are we ever going to take care of a baby?" 

"I've been thinking…and we can always let your Grandma and Grandpa watch over her. Or maybe even my parents. That is if I ever decide to talk to them again. But. The _point_ is that I _want_ this baby. If I didn't, I would've gotten an abortion." 

"Well," said Arnold rubbing the back of his neck. 

"Can you honestly tell me that you do not want this baby?" Helga stopped rocking the baby and looked at Arnold half sternly. 

He cracked a smile and shook his head. Helga lifted her up high enough so that Arnold could take her from Helga's arms. Gently, Arnold cradeled her and nearly melted when he saw her little hand rubbing her eyes…her little mouth opening to yawn. 

"Hey there," he mumbled. "You know that you are very special to me?" he grinned and kissed her head. "Yes you are…" 

Helga giggled. "You don't know how stupid you sound. And yet, I adore it." 

The baby began to wince. Arnold thought she was going to cry. "I think that she wants her Mommy," he said, giving Jacqueline back to Helga. 

He leaned over and handed her to Helga. He lifted up his head to look at her and found them two inches away from each other's faces. They could feel their breath on each other's lips. Their eyes were locked together. The only thing holding them apart was…well…the baby. 

Suddenly, the door opened. The nurse walked in and Helga turned her head away from Arnold's as he straightened up. 

"Helga, I've news that you and Jacqueline will be able to leave tomorrow." She smiled warmly, walking towards Helga. 

"Fantastic," she replied. 

"But right now I also have to take little Jacqueline away." Her arms lifted up Jacqueline from Helga's arms. "Say bye-bye to Mommy," she said in a baby-voice. 

Helga humored her and laughed along. The door closed behind her. 

"I can't believe it," sighed Arnold. 

"Can't believe what?" 

"We have a baby. I never thought this would happen until I got married. Well, I didn't even think I would knock someone up at a party either…" 

"We could get married if you wanted to." 

Arnold raised an eyebrow. "We haven't even kissed. We can't stand each other." 

"I guess," she replied softly. Then she groaned and kicked her feet. 

"What's wrong?" Arnold worried. 

"I'm never going to be a size five again…" 

He couldn't help it; but he laughed so hard. "Is that the only thing you can think about?" 

Helga crossed her arms. "You're not the one who gained over 70 lbs in nine months, so I would have no opinion if I were you." 

"Dang, I can't believe I'm still wearing this stupid tux jacket," grumbled Arnold as he took it off. "It's so hot." 

Helga stared at his white dress shirt and black dress pants. Remember…she loved it when he wore that. She just couldn't take her eyes off his body. 

"Is there something on my shirt?" Arnold wondered, looking down at his chest. "Why do you keep staring?" 

Helga looked away. "No reason…"   
Arnold nodded. His stomach grumbled. "Man, I'm getting hungry. Ya want anything to eat Helga? I'm going to head to the cafeteria." 

"Not really. I'm not that hungry. Go ahead and go." 

"Alright. I'll be back in half an hour…to an hour tops. Ok?" 

"Okay…now _go_!" Helga rushed him. 

He walked out the door. She groaned and dropped her head back on the pillow. She thought about what was going to happen in the future. Then she remembered. _I have to tell Phoebe about this!_ _Damn, where do I get a phone?_ Her eyes wandered around the room. _Eurika! Arnold's jacket._ She leaned over and dug into Arnold's jacket pockets and found his cell phone. Hurriedly, she dialed the seven digits and awaited as she heard the rings. 

"Hello?" 

"Phebes! I have big news…" 

Fourty-five minutes later, Arnold walked back in the door with an apple in his mouth and holding a cup of iced tea in one hand and three cookies in the other. Helga wrapped up her conversation with Phoebe and turned off his cell. 

"Sorry, I had to call Phoebe," she said before he could say anything. 

Arnold spit out his apple on a plate and put down his goods. "It's okay…you know the cafeteria has good stuff? It was all sooo much better than the crap at school." 

Helga laughed. "You must've eaten a lot." 

"What's so funny?" 

"You have, like, pasta or whatever on your cheek." She pointed to it. 

Arnold tried to wipe it off. It wouldn't come off. 

"Stupid little boy…come here." She motioned her hand to flap towards her. 

"Yes mother…" Arnold leaned towards her, turning his head so that his stained cheek was facing her. 

Helga licked her thumb and began rubbing his cheek with it. She squeezed his cheeks together, making his lips pucker up. "Voila! It's all gone." 

Arnold turned to her and grinned goofily. "Thanks." His eyes twinkled. Oh, how she loved those blue eyes.

She and Arnold were hooked on a moment that wasn't happening yet. _Make a move,_ Helga thought. _Move in for the kill_. Right then and there, almost at the same time, they leaned in for a kiss. A kiss so over-whelming, revealing all that they had held back from each other for months. Sparks flew…their lips were locked so tightly they were dependent on each other for air. Helga put her arms around Arnold's neck. Arnold had to keep his balance by keeping his hands on the bars on the sides of Helga's bed. 

Helga gasped for breath as they continued to embrace in that sweet moment that they had both so longed for. 

Arnold pulled away first. He smiled in a dazed and confused kind of way. "Where did _that_ come from?" 

Helga shrugged. "I was hoping you knew…" 

"You know, this could be the beginning of a wonderful relationship." 

The End

****

**A/N**: I don't know…I'm thinking. Should I make a sequal? I kind of have an idea for what I could do, but I don't think I could go through with it and/or pull it off. But well, it wouldn't be so romantic…more like adventure/mystery ish…whaddya think? Your opinion matters! Well, hope you enjoyed this story. And thanks for all the reviews. I really appreciate all of your support.   
Oh, and I didn't really bother proof reading this chapter. I only got 5 hours of sleep last night…and I have tons of stuff to do. 

One more thing…

GO ANGELS!! 

*cough* 


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